US suspends Cognizant PERM green card filings amid fraud probe
Synopsis
A day after Cognizant announced plans to hire 1,500 US graduates and expand its AI workforce to 15,000, the US Department of Labour suspended the tech giant's PERM green card filings over alleged fraud and harm to American workers. The White House anti-fraud task force is involved, and Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito's 'handcuffs await' warning signals this is far from a routine compliance review.
Key Takeaways
The US Department of Labour suspended Cognizant 's PERM permanent labour certification filings on 9 September amid a federal fraud investigation.
Labour Department Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito announced the suspension on social media platform X, warning 'Handcuffs await.' Cloudera 's PERM filings were also suspended in a separate announcement by the same inspector general.
No criminal charges against either company have been filed; the specific allegations and number of affected applications were not disclosed.
The suspension came one day after Cognizant announced plans to hire 1,500 US graduates and scale its AI workforce to 15,000 .
PERM suspension does not automatically extend to H-1B petitions, which operate under a separate programme.
The US Department of Labour has suspended permanent labour certification filings by technology services giant Cognizant as federal authorities investigate alleged fraud and possible harm to American workers. The action, announced on 9 September, targets the company's applications under the Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) programme — a critical step in securing employment-based green cards for foreign nationals.
What the Suspension Covers
Labour Department Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito confirmed the move in a post on social media platform X, stating: 'Cognizant's PERM filings are suspended.' He added: 'Threats to American workers will NOT be tolerated. Alongside @WHFraudTF, we're following facts, fraud and finances. Handcuffs await.'
D'Esposito said his office is working in coordination with Labour Department officials and the White House anti-fraud task force. His post did not disclose the specific allegations against Cognizant, the number of applications affected, or the duration of the suspension.
In a separate announcement, D'Esposito also confirmed that Cloudera's PERM filings had been suspended, posting: 'One more. @cloudera: PERM filings SUSPENDED.' No criminal charges against either company were identified in the material released by the inspector general, and no responses from Cognizant or Cloudera were included.
Timing and Cognizant's Expansion Plans
The suspension came just one day after Cognizant publicly announced plans to expand its American workforce. The company said it intended to hire 1,500 US college graduates and grow its Frontier Certified Engineer and Frontier Business Operator workforce to 15,000 people.
Cognizant Chief Executive Officer Ravi Kumar S said: 'We are hiring American graduates, standing up new American job categories for the AI era, and putting Cognizant's capital and leadership behind a national coalition built to make sure this transition works for workers.' Kumar also stated: 'We believe AI will create significantly more jobs than it displaces and shift greater value, wages and accountability to the frontlines of America's workforce.'
Cognizant additionally announced it had joined RAISE US, a bipartisan coalition focused on helping American workers transition into the artificial intelligence economy. The company's Synapse programme has reportedly trained more than one million people and now aims to reach two million by 2030.
What PERM Is — and What the Suspension Does Not Cover
Under the PERM programme, the Labour Department must certify that no qualified US workers are available for a given position, and that hiring a foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages or working conditions of similarly employed Americans. PERM certification is associated with permanent employment and employment-based green cards.
Notably, PERM is separate from the H-1B programme, which permits US employers to temporarily hire foreign professionals for speciality occupations. A suspension of PERM filings does not, by itself, indicate that a company's H-1B petitions have also been suspended.
About Cognizant
Cognizant is a US-based multinational technology services company headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey, and listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker CTSH. The company was founded in Chennai, India, in 1994 and retains a significant workforce and operational presence in the country. The suspension, coming amid a broader federal push on immigration compliance, puts one of the most prominent India-linked IT firms in Washington's crosshairs at a particularly sensitive moment.
The duration of the suspension and the scope of the investigation remain unclear; further disclosures from the inspector general's office or the White House task force are expected as the probe advances.
Point of View
And raises the question of whether federal enforcement is being used as a pressure tool alongside, or independent of, a genuine fraud inquiry. What is missing from the inspector general's announcement is substance: no specific allegations, no count of affected applications, no timeline. 'Handcuffs await' is a political statement as much as a legal one. For Indian IT firms broadly, this is a warning shot: PERM filings, long treated as routine compliance, are now active enforcement terrain under the current US administration's immigration posture.
NationPress
9 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why has the US suspended Cognizant's PERM filings?
The US Department of Labour suspended Cognizant's PERM filings on 9 September as federal authorities investigate alleged fraud and possible harm to American workers. The inspector general's office is working with the White House anti-fraud task force, though specific allegations and the number of affected applications have not been publicly disclosed.
What is the PERM programme and why does it matter for Cognizant?
PERM, or Permanent Labour Certification, is a US Department of Labour programme that employers must complete to sponsor foreign workers for employment-based green cards. For a company like Cognizant, which employs a significant number of foreign nationals, a PERM suspension directly disrupts the pathway to permanent residency for those workers.
Does the PERM suspension also affect Cognizant's H-1B visas?
No — not automatically. PERM certification is a separate process from the H-1B programme, which covers temporary employment of foreign professionals in speciality occupations. A suspension of PERM filings does not, by itself, mean Cognizant's H-1B petitions have also been suspended.
Has Cognizant been criminally charged?
No criminal charges against Cognizant have been identified in the material released by the inspector general as of 9 September. The investigation is ongoing, and neither Cognizant nor Cloudera provided a public response in the initial announcement.
Which other company was affected alongside Cognizant?
Cloudera's PERM filings were also suspended, as announced separately by Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito on the same day. Like the Cognizant action, no specific allegations or criminal charges against Cloudera were disclosed.
